Who are YOU?The way you learn to speak about yourself will often lead you astray in knowing who you really are. Consider these possible expressions which imply something about who the "I" is that you are. "I think that John is smart." "I think that 2+2 is 4." Who is the "I" who thinks? Do you choose to think these thoughts? "I think he is a bad person." Do you choose to think he is a bad person? Could you choose otherwise? "I feel like crying." "I feel on top of the world!" Who is the "I" who feels? Could you choose to feel otherwise in that moment? "I believe in life after death." "As a Muslim, I believe the entire Koran is the word of God." "I am an atheist." Who is the "I" who believes? In the moment, could you choose to believe or be otherwise? "I am a Democrat." "I am a Libertarian." "I am a Republican." "I am gentle." "I don't believe that I have much courage." With any of these examples, I contend that, at least in the moment, you have no power to choose other than what you think, feel, believe, or are. Consider for a moment the idea that a little orange man from Jupiter has been planting all these thoughts, feelings, and beliefs into you and has fooled you into believing that all these thoughts are coming from you. Do you have any way of determining whether or not this is the case? Do you have any choice as to whether or not to have these thoughts, feelings, and beliefs? I believe (LOL) that, in the moment of their happening, you have no choice. They just show up. I suggest that the "I" that is thought, that is felt, that is believing in these situations is not the essential you. If all these things are happening to you, who is the "you" that they are happening to? Leaving aside the question of the soul, I say there is a "you" whom each of us can distinguish and experience for ourselves. This "you," this "I" is the You/I of choice, the You/I of creation through choice. We are only present to this You/I when we recognize the option to choose other than what we have chosen. Only in this case can we say that we had a choice, that we have chosen. Who you are is the "you" who chooses in this moment. Who you are is continually being created by you in choosing and distinguishing that you have chosen. Once you have made this distinction of who you are, you can begin to notice in which situations you have choice and in which situations you don't, in which instances you have in-the-moment power and in which instances you don't. For example, you can begin to discover that you don't have in-the-moment power about most of the thoughts and feelings that show up in your life. What you do have in-the-moment choice and power over is how you choose to act in response to your thoughts and feelings and beliefs. What you do have in-the-moment choice and power over is how you listen to and what interpretations you put on those thoughts and feelings and beliefs. I invite you to embrace the chooser and creator that you are each and every moment, while acknowledging your tendency to avoid choices. Notice the continuing choice of courage it takes to recognize the difference. ?
For more essays about different ways to look at courage >>
|
|
| Is Your Courage a Cripple? | Are You Waiting for Your Mood to Change? |
| It is NOT Fear that Stops You | Are Love and Fear Opposites? |
| Are You Courageous or Foolish? | Back to Main Menu |
| Warning: Safety can Often be Dangerous | |